Cash-register.



No. 7l3,l59. Patented Nqv, "Q1802.

J. SCHINNELLER.

CASH REGISTER.

(Applicstipn filed Nov. 19. 1901.)

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CASH REGISTER.

(Application filed Nov. 19, 1901.)

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J. SCl-IINNELLER.

CASH REGISTER.

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UNITED STATES PATENT ()FFICE.

JACOB SOIIINNELLER, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA.

CASH-REGISTER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 713,159, dated November 11, 1902.

Application filed November 19, 1901, Serial No. 82,873. (No model.)

To aZZ whom, 7316 may concern:

Be it known that I, JACOB SCHINNELLER, a resident of Pittsburg, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Cash-Registers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description thereof.

My invention relates to a cash-register; and its object is to provide such register with means which will insure the registration of all payments made to the person having the register in charge.

Gash-registers in mercantile and other establishments will accurately register the amounts paid in, providing the keys are properly manipulated, and the only loss to mercantile establishments using such cash-registers arises from a fault of the employee having the same in charge in either wilfully or carelessly neglecting to properly manipulate the keys or key-levers. It is therefore of primary importance that some means be provided which will act as a safeguard for the employer and which will make it practically obligatory on the employee having the register in charge to properly manipulate the key at each payment. All cash-registers are provided with indicators which will indicate to the purchaser the amount of his purchase, and most registers have on them special notices calling attention to these indicators; but obviously most purchasers pay little or no attention to these indicators. If, however, some means can be provided which will insure the attention of the purchaser to the making of the registration, it will practically be impossible for the employee to fail to properly manipulate the key. I propose, therefore, to provide the cash-register with special means which will make it advantageous to the purchaser to closely observe the registration of the amount of his purchase. To this end I provide the register with some special device which will attract the attention of the purchaser and which is adapted to be displayed at irregular intervals, so that it can never be told just when it will appear, but when it does appear will entitle the purchaser to a rebate, redeemable check, or the like. By this means each purchaser in the hope that he may receive a rebate or check will take special notice of the registration of the amount of his purchase in order to see if the special indicating device is displayed, and he will naturally protest if the employee does not properly manipulate the key at his pur chase. In this way every purchaser is in a sense made an interested party to the proper registration of the amount of his purchase. This special indicating device may be of various forms such as a plate or shutter which is displayed or exposed at irregular intervals by the mechanism, or a printing mechanism or the like which will print, issue, or display a check or strip at irregular intervals, or, in fact, any other means which will attract the attention of the purchaser and indicate to him that he is entitled to a rebate, redeemable check, or the like. In the accompanying drawings I have shown a shutter or plate as the special indicating means; but it will of course be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. I have also shown the same applied to a type of cash-register which is in quite wide use; but it will also be understood that the principle of the invention applies to other caslrregisters than that shown and may be adapted thereto by slight mechanical changes.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is an elevation of the rear of an ordinary form of cash-register, showing my special indicator applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a front view of the special indicating means. Fig. 3 is a transverse vertical section on the line 3 3, Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a detail face View of the controlling disks or wheels, showing the pawls in one position. Fig. 5 is a similar view showing the pawls in a different position, and Fig. 6 is a detail plan view of the tripping device.

I have shown my invention applied to one type of the National Cash-Register, and all the mechanism for the special indicator is located inside the casing at the rear of the ordinary registering and indicating mechanism of the register. This type of cash-register, as is well known, is provided with indicaters l, which are raised at the proper time to indicate the amount of the purchase and which are dropped when the next key is operated. These indicators, as well as the registering mechanism of the machine, are actuated by key-levers, the rear ends of which are shown at 2 and which project through the rear plate 3 of the registering mechanism. Such registers are also provided with a drawerlocking stud 4, connected to the inner end of a lever 5, pivoted at 6 and having its outer end adapted to be depressed by the bar 7, which is actuated on the depression of each of the keys of the registering mechanism. All of these parts are well known in machines of this type, and their usual mode of operation is also Well understood. In this type of cashregister I make use of the projecting rear ends 2 of the key-levers and of the drawerreleasing lever 5 for operating my special indicator. The special indicator comprises a plate or shutter 8, which will have upon its face any suitable designation-such, for instance, as the words 40 per cent. discount, or You are entitled to a check, or some other words of like import which will be of advantage to the purchaser whose purchase has been registered when this shutter is displayed. This shutter normally is in its lowered position, as shown in Fig. 1, and thus out of sight, and suitable mechanism is provided for raising the same to display it, such mechanism being constructed so as tov raise the said plate at irregular intervals in order that neither the operator nor the purchaser will know when the same is to be displayed, and are thus prevented from working? the machine.

The indicator and its operating mechanism are mounted on a frame or spider 9, suitably secured to the frame of the machine and which is provided at its upper end with an arm 10, having thereon a stud 11 or similar device for engaging a guide or groove 12 in the support 13 for the plate 8 in order to properly guide the latter in its up-and-down movement. The support 13 of the plate is pivoted at its lower end, as at 14, to the outer end of an arm 15, which is swiveled upon a stud 16, mounted in the frame 9. This arm 15 together with the plate 8 are normally held in their depressed positions by gravity; but a spring or weight may be added, if desired or necessary.

Loosely mounted on the stud 16 are a plurality of ratchet or toothed wheels or disks, three such wheels'17, 18, and19 being shown;

but any number greater than one may be em ployed, as necessary or desired. The teeth of each of these wheels are a different distance apart from those of the other wheels, and at one or more points on each wheel a notch of greater depth 20 is provided. Between the adjacent toothed wheels and at the outer sides of the outer wheels are friction-plates 21, which project upwardly beyond the wheels and are secured so they cannot rotate, as by being mounted upon a stud 22, secured to the frame 9. This will insure each of the toothed wheels rotatingindependently of the others. To prevent backward rotation of the wheels or disks, suitable means are provided, such as the pawls 23, pivoted on 25, and preferably at the pivotal point of the v pawl 24 thereof, is a connecting-bar 28, which has its lower end pivoted to one end of an arm 29, whose other end is pivoted by the stud 30 to a bracket 31, projecting from the frame 9. Suitably secured to the connectingbar 28, as by rivets or otherwise, is a bar 32, which extends across the back of the machine and lies in the path of movement of the ends 2 of the key-levers. This bar will be of such length or construction that it will be struck by all of the key-levers upon which a discount or rebate is to be given. I have shown the same as straight and of such length that it is in the path of all the levers except the two end ones, whose keys in the type of cash-register illustrated are usually marked No pur chase and 1 cent; but obviously this bar can be altered in length or construction, so as to be moved by a less number of the keys than shown. The pawl-arm 25 will be drawn down by the weight of the connecting-bar 28 and horizontal bar 32, but it is preferably drawn downwardly by the spring 33, having one of its ends connected to said arm and the other end to a stationary part, such as the stud 30. The downward movement of the arm 25 is limited by an adjustable screw 34, lying in the path of movement of its outer end, said screw being tapped through a stud or boss 35, secured to the frame 9. The arm 29, it will be observed, is of the same length and practically parallel to the arm 25, so that the connecting-bar 28 and the bar 32 move in a straight vertical direction and are not tilted, as would be the case if the arm 29 were not used.

Whenever a key is depressed, the. rear end of the key-lever will strike the bar 32 and raise the same, thereby raising the connecting-bar 28 and swinging the arm 25 about the stud 16, thus carrying the pawl 24 upwardly and imparting-a partial rotary movement to the toothed wheels. The pawl 24 is of such width that it will engage all of the toothed wheels, and consequently each of said wheels will be given a forward rotary movement, and the extent of this movement will depend upon the distance between the teeth on the wheels, and as this distance is diiferent for each wheel it follows that the different wheels will be given different rotary movements. This step-by-step forward rotary movement of the disk wheels will continue until the deep notches 20 on all of the disk wheels are brought into alinement, and on the next manipulation of the register the pawl will fall into'these deep notches and be in position to operate the special indicator as follows: The

arm 15, attached to the indicator, is provided with an arm 36,having atits upper end ashoulder or projection 37, which in the normal operation of the pawl 24 lies inside of the path of movement of the latter; but when said pawl drops into the deep notches it will be in position to engage the shoulder 37 and in its upward movement carry the arm 36 upwardly, thereby swinging the arm 15 about its pivot 16 and through the support 13 raising the indicator-plate 8. The arm 15 or the support 13 or both are provided at their lower sides with a notch 38, and when the indicator-plate has been sufficiently elevated this notch is engaged by a detent 39, mounted on the outer end of a rock-shaft40, journaled in the frame 9. This detent will hold the indicator-plate in its elevated or exposed position, so that the purchaser will have sufficient opportunity to see the same. Suitable means, however, must be employed for rendering the special indicator invisible when the register is operated the next time, and as a means for this purpose I have provided the rock-shaft 40 with an arm 41, said arm having connected thereto the link 42, which at its lower end is engaged by the inner end of the drawer-releasing lever 5. This lever 5, as is well known, is vibrated at each operation of the register and by the closing of the drawer, so that through the link 42 it will rock the shaft 40, and thus disengage the detent 39 from the notch 38 and allow the indicator-plate 8 to drop. A very slight movement of the lever 5 will suffice to disengage the detent 39 from the notch 38, and as any further movement of the said detent and its connected mechanism would be useless I provide means for disen gaging the link 42 from the lever 5. To this end I have provided the end of the lever 5 with a plate 46, which is slotted, as at 47, for receiving the lower end of the link 42, and said link in turn is provided with a shoulder 48, which normally rests on the upper face of the plate 46. 1 provide said link on one side with the cam-face 49, and in the path of movement of said cam-face I provide a suitable abutment, such as the pin 50, in the outer end of an arm 51, secured to the bracket 31 or other stationary part of the machine. During the first part of the upward movement of the lever 5 the shoulder 48 of the link 42 rests on the plate 46, and said link is consequently raised by the lever to disengage the detent 39 from the notch 38, thus allowing the special indicator to drop. The further upward movement, however, of the link 42 brings its cam-face against the stop or abutment 50, which serves to crowd said link to one side, thus moving the shoulder 48 off the upper face of the plate 46 and permitting the link to slide idly through the slot 47 in said plate. Vhen the lever 5, however, again moves downward, the plate 46 will pass below the shoulder 48 on the link 42, and as said link is in an inclined position it will swingover until said shoulderis again brought into engagement with the upper face of the plate.

The operation of the device is as follows: \Vhenever one of the keys of the register upon which a discount or rebate is to be allowed is depressed to register a purchase the rear end of the key-lever will engage bar 32, and through the connecting-bar 28 will swing the arm 25 about its pivot, thereby carrying the pawl 24 upward and imparting a slight rotary motion to the toothed wheels, these wheels, by reason of their differently-spaced teeth, being rotated through difierent distances. As soon as the key-lever is released the bar 32 will be released and the spring 33 will depress the arm 25, thereby drawing the pawl 24 downwardly into position to engage the next teeth on the toothed wheels at the next operation of the register. This continues for each successive purchase until the deep notches 20 on all of the wheels are brought into alinement. Then at the next upward movement of the pawl it will drop into these notches in such position that it will engage the shoulder 37 on the arm 15, therebyswiuging said arm about its pivot 16 and raising the special indicator,as described. The latter will be held in its elevated position by the detent 39. WVhen the drawer is closed or when the next purchase is registered, the toothed wheels will be operated in the ordinary manner, and at the same time the drawer-releasinglever 5, through the link 42, will disengage the detent 39 from the notch 38, thus permitting the indicator-plate 8 to drop out of sight. It will thus be seen that by reason of the dilferently-spaced teeth on the wheels it is impossible to tell just when the special indicator will be displayed; but this will occur at irregular intervals. Inasmuch as the customers know that there is a possibility that such indicator will be displayed and that such display will be of advantage to them they will naturally watch the registration of their purchase, and as a consequence the employee cannot fail to properly manipulate the key.

As above stated, my invention can be applied to other forms of cash-registers than that shown, it only being necessary to so alter the same that the pawl 24 will be operated from the desired keys. It is also perfectly obvious that by means of the wheels 17, 18, and 19 various forms of special indicators may be manipulated. For instance, the arm 13 may be made to operate printing or delivery mechanism which will display a strip, ticket, or check at the desired time, or said arm may be used to close an electric current for operating printing, delivery, or display mechanism of any kind.

\Vhat I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the registering mechanism, of a special device for attracting the attention of the purchaser, and mechanism actuated from any one of a plurality of the keys for operating said special device at irregular intervals with reference to the key operated.

2. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the registering mechanism, of a special device for attracting the attention of the purchaser, mechanism actuated from any one of a plurality of the keys for operating said special device at irregular intervals with reference to the key operated, and means for rendering said device inoperative or invisible.

3. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the registering mechanism, of a special device for attracting the attention of the purchaser, mechanism actuated from any one of a plurality of the keys for operating said special device at irregular intervals with reference to the key operated, means for holding said special device in its displayed position, and means for releasing said holding means.

4. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the registering mechanism, of a special device for attracting the attention of the purchaser, mechanism actuated from any one of a plurality of the keys for operating the same at irregular intervals with reference to the key operated, and means controlled from each of the keys for rendering said special device inoperative or invisi ble.

5. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the registering mechanism, of a special indicating or display device, mechanism for operating the same at irregular intervals, a bar arranged to be actuated from a plurality of the keys, and connections between said bar and the indicatoroperating mechanism adapted to control and actuate the latter.

6. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the registering mechanism, ot' a special indicatingor display device, mechanism for operating the same at irregular intervals, a bar arranged to be actuated by a plurality of the keys, connections between said bar and the indicator-operating mechanism adapted to control and actuate the latter, means for maintaining the indicator in its displayed position, and means controlled from each of the keys for releasing said last-named means.

7. In a cash-register, the combination with the keysfor actuating the registering mechanism, of a special indicating or display device, a plurality of movable bodies provided with one or more notches or openings, means controlled from said notches or openings when they are in certain relation to one another for operating the indicating or display device,and means actuated by any one of a plurality of the keys for moving said bodies different distances, whereby the indicating or display device will be operated at irregular intervals.

8. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the registering mechan ism, of a special indicating or display device, a plurality of disks having difierently-spaced teeth and each having one or more deep notches, means controlled by said notches when they are in alinement for operating the indicating or displaying device, and a pawl controlled from a plurality of the keys for rotating said disks.

9. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the registering mechanism, of a special indicating or displaying device, a plurality of disks having differentlyspaced teeth and each having one or more deep notches, a pawl controlled by a plurality of the keys for rotating said disks, and means for actuating the indicating or displaying device, said means lying in the path of movement of the pawl when it drops into the notches in the disks.

. 10. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the registering mechanism, of a special device for attracting the attention of the purchaser, a plurality of disks having diiferen tly-spaced teeth and each having one or more deep notches, means controlled by said notches when they aline for operating the special device, a pawl for ro tating said disks, a bar lying in the path of movement of a plurality of the keys, and connections between said bar and the pawl.

11. In acash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the registering mechanism, of a special device for attracting the attention of the purchaser, a plurality of disks having dilferen tly-spaced teeth and each having one or more deep notches, means controlled by said notches when they aline for operating the special device, a pawl controlled by a plurality of the keys for rotating said disks, and means controlled from each of the keys for rendering said special device inoperative or invisible.

12. In acash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the registering mechanism, of a special device for attracting the attention of the purchaser, means controlled from a plurality of the keys for displaying the same atirregular intervals, a detent for maintaining the same in its displayed position, and means operated by the drawer-releasing mechanism for moving said detent to render the special device inoperative or invisible.

13. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys foractuatin g the registering mechanism, of a special device for attracting the attention of the purchaser, a plurality of disks having difierently-spaced teeth and each having one or more deep notches, means controlled by said notches when they aline for operating the special device, a pawl controlled by a plurality of the keys for rotating said disks, a detent for holding the special device in its displayed position,and means controlled from each key for moving said detent to render the special device inoperative orinvisible.

14:. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys for actuating the indicating and registering mechanism, of a special indicating or display device, a plurality of disks having dilTerently-spaced teeth and each having one or more deep notches, a pawl controlled by a plurality of the keys for rotating said disks, means for operating the specialindicating or display device, said means lying in the path of movement of the pawl when it drops into the alining deep notches of the disks, a detent for maintaining the special indicating and display device in its displayed position, and means controlled from each key for moving said detent to render the indicating or display device invisible or inoperative.

15. In a cash-register, the combination with the keys foractuatingtheindicating and registering mechanism, of a special indicating or display device, means controlled from a plurality of the keys for displaying the same at irregular intervals, a detent for holding the same in its displayed position, a link connected to said detent, said link being provided with a cam-face, a stop in the path of movement of said cam-face, a lever having a slot through which the lower end of the link passes, and a shoulder on said link for engagement with said lever.

In testimony whereof I, the said JACOB SOHINNELLER, have hereunto set my hand. JACOB SOHINNELLER.

Vitnesses:

ROBERT C. TOTTEN, G. O, RAYMOND. 

